How
does the Henspa compare to a traditional 8' x 10' chicken coop built on concrete?
There are many different designs
for chicken coops, and your experience may vary, but this is a good starting place to see
what's involved if you've never had chickens. |
| Design |
Traditional Coop |
Henspa |
| If you've looked around at plans, you'll see there are as many plans as
there coop owners. Everyone comes up with their own thing. Plan to spend many hours changing
things in the smelly coop. You may try many ideas before you get something that works for
you. |
The beauty of the Henspa is
that everything having to do with a small back-yard flock has been attended to
effectively. You don't have to do research or trust some weekend farmer's judgment
about
the best way to keep chickens. Except in climates that get extremely cold for long periods
of time, it is good for all seasons. No unsightly fenced-in pen is needed. |
| If you think you can
imitate a Henspa, good luck! One person thought he could make it cheaper. After$600 and
countless trips to the store, it still wasn't built. It's much harder to build a Henspa
than it looks. The Henspa has 110 parts in it, including a custom-made feeder and waterer. |
| Mess |
Traditional Coop |
Henspa |
| One first-time chicken owner said "When
we first purchased our farm, I told my family that the only animal I refused to have was
chickens. The chicken coup on my grandparents farm where I visited growing up, while kept
clean, was still stuffy, hot and smelly. "
To collect
your eggs, you'll have to walk through chicken manure, put your hand in a dark nest, and
hope there aren't any visiting snakes! |
Since you move the Henspa everyday, most of the mess is on the
grass, fertilizing it. The hens go upstairs to roost at night and lay eggs during the day.
With the tarp-removal system and shavings, you only pull out the upstairs mess once every
2 months or so. Simply pull the tarp out to empty it, spray it with the hose and it's
clean. Replace the tarp with fresh shavings and you're done! |
| Predators |
Traditional Coop |
Henspa |
| Chickens are very prone to
being killed off by dogs, possums, snakes, weasels, hawks, owls, foxes and other animals.
Burrowing animals will eventually get into most stationary chicken pens unless they have
extensive protection; electric fences, buried wire, etc. Hawks and predatory birds can fly
into open chicken yards. Snakes love eggs and find their way into many coops. Keeping a
flock of chickens usually results in an ongoing battle against predators. In the suburbs,
dogs are the worst enemy to chickens. (The Henspa is dog proof.) |
A Henspa is designed to keep
your hens safe from all animals. Flying predators can't get in, strong animals can't get
through the wire mesh, which is much stronger than chicken wire. Burrowing animals never
have a chance to start. When the Henspa is moved daily, predators do not get familiar
enough with it to start burrowing. |
| Time and Maintenance |
Traditional Coop |
Henspa |
| When everything is convenient,
you can spend 15 minutes twice a day feeding, watering and egg-collecting. (This is based
on my own experience carrying feed and water to a coop and searching for eggs.) Because of
the hassle, many people only clean their coops once a year. Consider having friends over
to help. Promise them a barbecue, strong drink, clear nasal passages or whatever you think
will get them to come. |
Make one trip to the Henspa
each day. Collect your eggs and move the Henspa 8 feet. (3-5 minutes, depending on how far
you walk) Every 4 to 6 days fill the feeder with 20 lbs., of feed. (7 minutes.)
Add water to the reservoir every 3-4 days. (10 minutes, depending on water pressure and
the availability of a hose that reaches the Henspa!) Every 3 months or so, change the
shavings upstairs by removing the tarp. (10 minutes) |
Estimated Time for One Month of Care |
Chore |
Coop |
Henspa |
| 1. Feeding |
16 hours (1/2 hour/day) |
0.75 hour (10 min/ week) |
| 2. Water |
(included with feeding) |
1.66
hours (10 min/ 3 days) |
| 3. Egg-collecting |
(included with feeding) |
1.5 hours (3 min/ day) |
| 4. Cleaning coop |
(You should, but you won't) |
0.08 hours
(10 minutes/ 2months) |
| 5. Moving |
none |
(included with egg-collecting) |
| Total Hours/Month |
16 hours |
3.93 hours |
| * Labor
$6.00/hr |
$96.00 |
$23.58 |
| Money |
Traditional Coop |
Henspa |
| We estimate building a traditional 8' x 10' chicken coop shed
on a slab with an exterior wire cage will cost at about $1200. This includes
site-preparation and concrete, lumber for walls and roof, roofing, chicken
wire, fencing, nests, roost poles, electricity and lights. |
Even if a Henspa costs $300-$500 more than you intend to
spend on a traditional coop, its benefits make it a sound investment! |
| * Time = money. If you were paying your kids to take care
of the coop at $6.00/ hour, it would cost you an extra $72.42/month to take care of
traditional coop. Based on the above assumptions, you could save $869 a year in labor costs. Every subsequent year you re-coop
another $869!
When you also consider the fact that organic eggs routinely sell for $1-2 a dozen
more than store bought eggs and you can quickly realize the economic value of a Henspa.
Now, of course, we know that some other people's kids
don't always do their chores regularly. Who will take care of your chickens? Isn't your
time worth more than $6.00 an hour? |
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